


Aziraphale Makes a Choice

by angelannwyl



Category: Good Omens (TV), Good Omens - Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett
Genre: Fluffy, M/M, Other, They Do Get Together At The End, both boys are male seeming but pretty non binary in this, but not nearly as many as crowley has in this fic, he/him pronouns, listen I've not really posted my own writing anywhere before, not angsty bc I cant do that why should i make yall, relationship, so im full of fears!
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-20
Updated: 2020-05-20
Packaged: 2021-03-02 23:00:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,361
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24284746
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/angelannwyl/pseuds/angelannwyl
Summary: After the Not-Apocalypse Aziraphale and Crowley have to figure out what comes next.  Aziraphale makes a choice, confusing the jam outta a local demon.
Relationships: Aziraphale/Crowley (Good Omens)
Kudos: 6





	Aziraphale Makes a Choice

They sat on the bench, waiting for the bus, the quiet seeping beyond the type of companionable silence two beings who’ve known each other a long time share. Twisting, morphing slightly, into an awkwardness.

Crowley tipped the bottle of wine back again, one of the only things a recently fired demon can do when confronted with such a deafening lull.

“Oh! There it is,” Aziraphale pointed out, breaking his rigid posture “It says Oxford on the front...”  
“Yeah, but he’ll drive to London anyway,” Crowley murmured tossing back another gulp of wine, “Jus’ won’t know why.”  
“Suppose I should get him to drop me off at the bookshop.” Aziraphale said with a note of wistfulness.  
Crowley started in the middle of raising the bottle again and turned to look at him fully. Seeing Aziraphale was serious, he gaped slightly and set down the wine.  
He started once, stopped and tried again quietly “...It burned down. ‘member?” Aziraphale’s face froze, then fell like a stone through water. It was like shattering a stained glass window. He couldn’t watch that, watch his angel lose what was most precious all over again.  
“You can stay at my place.” the words burst from Crowley before he could bite it back, “If you like.” he added, just a moment too late.  
For the briefest moment, the clouds had cleared and the sunshine the angel reserved for the rarest of books broke through on his face. Then, before Crowley could be sure it was there, Aziraphale crumpled again, this time with a melancholy smile touching the side of his lips. “I don-I don’t think my side would like that.” He shot Crowley a quick glance.  
Crowley watched him closely, “You don't have a side anymore. Neither of us do.” as the angel turned to stare solidly back Crowley’s eyes slid away and watched the bus approach, even behind the sunglasses he felt too seen, “We’re on our own side. Like Agnes said, we have to choose our faces wisely.” He stuck out his hand for the bus and tried not to notice the way the side of his face tingled, like someone was staring at him.  
He heard the rustle of Aziraphale miracling the empty wine bottle away and then moving to stand with him.  
Crowley snapped as they boarded the bus and the bus driver found his empty coffee refilled and steaming and a remarkably fascinating new audio book playing on his very favourite subject. In this case that happened to be Jane Goodall’s adventures in gorilla habitats.  
Without much thought, Crowley plopped down at a window seat and slouched low, resuming his aesthetic. Aziraphale was still standing in the aisle looking up at the front of the bus with a small, surprised smile. As the bus began moving he started and looked over at Crowley, who was watching him curiously. Neither broke eye contact as Aziraphale resumed the walk down the aisle and then stopped at the seat where Crowley was.  
Aziraphale’s eyes darted down at the seats next to each other, at Crowley (who was growing more confused by the second), and back to the seats. He seemed to take a deep breath and then turned himself suddenly and sat down directly next to Crowley.  
That certainly straightened Crowley’s spine. The awkward silence that they seemed to have finally banished swarmed back out of nowhere and set itself heavily in the frightfully narrow space between the ethereal and occult beings who had been alive since the universe was simply dust.  
After what felt like eons, a concept these two were acutely familiar with, Aziraphale cleared his throat.  
“I think- I think I shall take you up on your offer, my dear.”  
Crowley’s mind was running wild trying to remember what exactly he had offered that the angel could be referring to.  
Aziraphale began to stammer, “I mean if it’s not too much trouble, I shouldn’t like to impose…”  
Crowley’s brain nearly audibly dinged, “No, no-”  
Aziraphale’s face fell slightly, “Oh, no? Well that’s alright, I suppose I-”  
“NO.” said Crowley a little more forcefully “I mean no, it’s- no- no, it's no trouble at all.”  
“Oh!”  
There was no way for Crowley to miss the warm glow that radiated off the angel.  
“It’s not much-I’m fairly certain I have some wine somewhere…”  
The contentment had filled even Aziraphale’s voice, “Oh my dear, I’m certain it’s lovely. Thank you - for...for offering.” he patted Crowley’s hand where it rested on his leg and even this small touch made the demon feel a bit like he was melting.

Quite suddenly there was a loud sound rather like a crash and before Crowley could blink he felt his hand in the vice-like grip of a principality already half up and prepared to battle. Crowley looked wildly around the bus but could see nothing and more importantly no one. There was a flash of light outside and Crowley realised.  
“Aziraphale…” he said softly, squeezing the angel’s hand lightly, “It was just thunder. A storm’s starting.”  
Aziraphale turned to him and there was a slight glow behind his eyes. Like a cat caught in the light, but with a color closer to a prism, giving away his truer nature.  
“Oh” he was breathing a bit shakily, “Quite right, yes. I do think I’m a bit jumpy. Sorry, I ah yes. I think-perhaps I overreacted a bit.” Aziraphale held a crackling energy in the air around him. Latent energy ready still.  
Crowley tugged lightly on the hand connecting them, “Its okay. We’re safe, for now.” Aziraphale let himself be pulled back down. Crowley’s hand still clasped tightly in his own.  
“Angel?” Crowley put their clasped hands on Aziraphale’s leg. “It’s really okay. You know how long it takes them to get it together in head office. We’re safe for now.”  
Aziraphale still sat ramrod straight , eyes front, but the energy around him subsided and it looked as though he was breathing again.  
Crowley was hesitant, he squeezed the hand again. Aziraphale seemed to startle at that, a blush rising high in his cheeks as he looked down and saw their hands together. Crowley felt the heat in his face and as the angel’s grip loosened he tried to pull his hand away.  
But Aziraphale’s fingers instead twined with his own, turning the grip to a hold instead.  
Now it was Crowley’s turn to freeze his eyes locked on the warm hand that knit with his own.  
The angel shook himself slightly. “I’m sorry about that my dear. I believe I’m still a mite keyed up from...earlier. I rather thought the wine would help.” Aziraphale looked over apologetically at Crowley, “Didn’t mean to frighten you.” The demon looked slowly up from their entwined hands. Aziraphale wasn’t talking about it, he’d just brushed over this very sudden new development. Well, if anyone was good at adapting to (and taking advantage of) new situations it was him.  
Crowley huffed and leaned back against the seat again, “As if you could scare me, Angel.”  
Aziraphale smiled lightly but managed to sound affronted, “I’ll have you know principalities were well made for battle. There was a reason I was given a sword you know.”  
Crowley’s eyebrows raised, “Was it perchance to lend weight to a moral argument?” A sly grin that seemed to bare far too many teeth slid into place.  
Now Aziraphale was actually affronted, “Well yes, I suppose it does.” He blustered, “And it was given to me directly by Her anyhow so I rather think there was a purpose.”  
“Angel, did you ever once use a sword? Flaming or otherwise?”  
He blushed furiously, “I-I don’t see how that has-“  
Crowley’s face broke into a grin of unbidden glee, “Angel...never?”  
Aziraphale fumbled for words, “I just, there, there was never really -any- any need, as you well know, I’d prefer-“  
Crowley’s head fell back in a cackling laugh, “Angel you were part of the Round Table.”  
Aziraphale frowned, “Yes Crowley, I am aware. It just so happened that every time someone wished to fight, they simply-lost.” He fluttered the fingers of his free hand.  
Crowley was still chuckling, “Aziraphale you’re a bit better at being an Angel than I think they give you credit for.”  
Aziraphale smiled lightly at that, his good mood returned. “I fancy it looked a bit odd from a human perspective. Sometimes,” he smiled wider “sometimes I didn’t even bother lifting my sword.”  
Crowley snorted which made the angel laugh as well.  
As they laughed a patter of rain began in earnest on the bus windows. Their laughter slowed and Crowley could feel nothing except a large warmth in his chest and a larger warmth in the hand knit with his. They turned to watch the rain fall in the dark countryside, the ring of laughter still present in their faces.  
“A bit like it’s washing away what was here before.” commented Aziraphale, his mood more ponderous.  
Crowley murmured a noise of agreement.  
“Everything will be...quite different now. Adam’s choice means nothing is the same.”  
Crowley couldn’t help but think of the hands clasped between them and the destination the bus drove towards.  
Aziraphale cleared his throat again, “The fact that he made a choice at all means nothing is the same. He chose. It’s quite outside anything at least I thought possible.” The angel mused a moment “I do think it’s the most beautiful thing the humans have created. Choice.”  
Crowley looked up at him, eyes wide behind dark lenses. “Yes, I suppose it is.”  
Aziraphale’s face was thoughtful, gazing out the window but seeing nothing. The way the angel spoke, almost forceful, felt as though he was building up to and something kept Crowley strung along with baited breath.  
“Even the little things.” Aziraphale continued “One could choose to- to eat sushi or- have a lovely curry!”  
Crowley nodded slowly though he wasn’t entirely sure the angel noticed.  
“You could choose to sit and read every book under the sun, or go for walks in the park.” he seemed to catch sight of Crowley then, “For example.” He explained  
“Yessss.” Crowley couldn’t help the light hiss from escaping as he continued to watch this solo argument unfold.  
“And I just think,” Aziraphale started matter of factly, his eyes now boring into Crowley’s “Well, I just think that’s rather nice. Choice.”  
Crowley couldn’t have looked away if he’d wanted to.  
Aziraphale looked at Crowley, past his sunglasses and into his eyes, a moment longer. Then seeming to have finished he turned back to settle more comfortably against the plastic bus seat, adjusting their hands so they remained resting on his knee.  
Crowley was still staring, more confused than ever before. He felt something important had just happened but for the life of him, whatever that meant, he couldn’t figure out what.  
“I-okay.” He said weakly.  
Aziraphale turned to Crowley and gave a sweet smile at his expression. “Don’t worry, dear boy. I think we’re almost there.”  
The demon started, “Wh-“ then looked out the bus window and saw they’d already entered London, “Ah-hm.”  
Silence fell and suddenly Crowley realised he could feel Aziraphale’s every heartbeat through his hand. It was warm, and the gentle beating felt calming even as nervous as it made him.  
Almost as if he could hear his thoughts, Aziraphale shifted slightly and their wrists rested against each other. Aziraphale sighed contentedly and Crowley could feel his own heartbeat stop, stutter before picking up double time.  
He tried to cover by shifting up in his seat and crossing his left arm across his front. “Raining here too.” He commented and immediately wanted to kick his own ass.  
But Aziraphale looked back out the window. “Oh, I do think London looks quite beautiful in the rain at night. Slightly out of focus.” He turned to Crowley, “you know we've been here so long and yet I still feel the same about London.”  
Crowley nodded, not looking up. “Still smells the same in the rain.” He said quietly.  
“I beg your pardon my dear?”  
“It still smells the same. London, when it rains.” Crowley’s eyes narrowed as he inspected his boots, daring some speck of mud to show itself, “Smells the exact same as after Macbeth and that time I accidentally got Guinevere’s horse drunk and when we almost got discorporated while falling into the duck pond. In the rain, the smell never changes.”  
There was silence. After a moment Crowley looked up only to see a terrifying glisten in Aziraphale’s eyes downturned eyes, a shaky smile on his face.  
“Az-wh-whtre-wz,” Crowley croaked, “Aziraphale- what’s wrong?!”  
Aziraphale looked up at him and as Crowley watched horrified a single tear fell from his eye and down his cheek. Without even thinking he put a finger out to catch it.  
“Aziraphale…” he murmured, “What is it?”  
Aziraphale took a shaky breath, “O-oh I-it’s just…”  
The bus came to a sudden stop.  
Aziraphale sniffled and looked out the window, “Oh! We’re here!”  
Crowley let his finger drop from the angel’s face as though burned. The lights of the bus seemed to have gotten brighter and he could swear he heard their tinny buzzing.  
“Come along, my dear.” Aziraphale pulled him up and began swiftly down the aisle, leading the way.  
They reached the bus driver who gave them a hesitant nod, “Good evening gents.”  
Aziraphale responded with a kind smile and informed him that he’d just had a fantastic evening where he’d won a free hotel room at one of London’s lovely 4-star hotels. The driver nodded in vague agreement and as soon as Aziraphale had tugged Crowley gently from the bus it peeled away for some well earned rest.  
Crowley watched the bus go, not really seeing it, still highly aware of where the tear had soaked into the pad of his finger.  
“Crowley?” began the angel behind him, a hesitant note in his voice.  
Crowley wrenched himself into the present and looked at Aziraphale standing beside him waiting.  
“Oh. OH right. Let’s-shall we then?” he gestured vaguely across the street and after checking both ways started across, the angel close, so close, next to him.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you very much for reading! I haven't really written things since high school and it shooows, but I'm trying to practice by writing cute things about characters I like. Let me know if you enjoy it! I'm on tumblr @angelannwyl this is chapter 1 of 3!


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